Wednesday, October 21, 2009

black sheep

We all have that one relative that pushes the envelope a little, wouldn't you agree? The one people tilt their head to one side when talking about. Sometime tongue clicking or shaking head motion will follow. I know you understand.

Mine is Grandpa Gus, a surly old fellow that claims he was kicked out of school for eating the books. Lied about his age to join the merchant marines at 15 years old. Tattoos, oh yeah he had bunches before they were even remotely cool. My how I wish I had taken a picture of them... He had a giant eagle on his chest, arms and if I recall it was on his back too. My favorite tattoo of his was a question mark right above his pants waistline. When I asked him why he had chosen that he smirked and told me "so the ladies will ask about it". He married 4 times. Even with his tough exterior he still had a soft touch.

This picture he carried in his wallet for probably 60 years, his father and him on his motorcycle.

My Dad bailed him out of jail many a time because he just could not seem to remember not to drive his car after he had been drinking. Drinking, he did far to much of that!

When I was 5 he tricked me into eating his Copenhagen chewing tobacco because it was candy, I am embarrassed to say I fell for that more then once.

He liked to watch my eyes light up as he would tell me about being stabbed in the mess hall while at sea. Then when I grew and had kids he liked to watch their eyes light up too.

He died a couple years ago after living a hard life, he lived longer then I think any of us thought he would. In the end he stayed with my family for a period of time. My, how my kids loved having Grandpa Gus here. He watched the Discovery channel all day, was always looking for a cookie or candy, and believed no one made better coffee then Hills Brothers.

One day he finished off a jar of the kids Gummi Vitamins because he thought they were candy...Dementia, yeah he had that too. He spoke Swedish like his mother before him and loved teaching us the Swedish words for things in the house. Not all rated G either words either.

One little quirk he had was ketchup on everything... the only things he said he would not use it on was cantaloupe and ice cream.

Why do I write this today, so I do not forget him. Remember your crazy, push the envelope relatives, don't let their memory disappear. They are part of the fabric of you. He is the stuff stories are written about. He lived his life on his terms. I am really nothing like him other then the fact that I tend to put BBQ sauce on much of what I eat. I still love to think about him though and what kind of life he lived.

16 comments:

Great, great story! I truly enjoyed it. I love relatives like that. My dad was quite a character. Lived to 86, and in the end died of Alzheimers. But while he had the dementia thing going, he too had some great stories for my kids as they grew up. Take care, Sue

Second.. you are absolutely right, as rotten as that old guy could be, I remember at least one of his wives saying when he wasn't drinking he was an angel on this earth.(.I don't know that I would of gone that far!!)

Thanks for sharing this. As a teen (and even when older) I often thought of Grampa Gus as sometimes difficult to deal with and so painfully honest it hurt. But, as he aged and things went like they did I learned to appreciate him for the sweet man he really could be. I wish I could be as straight forward as he & not give a damn what anyone else thought! RIP.

Tamis - what a great post and tribute to your Grandpa Gus. And you are right - we all have those quirky, sometimes troublesome relatives who fail to follow the mold of straight and narrow. Good for you for celebrating his life.

Don't forget him and keep telling your kids about him. "Kicked out of school for eating the books" - you got'ta love that!

Beautiful, loving post Tamis. I loved every word! I wouldn't call ol' Gus a black sheep...more like leader of the pack. I can only imagine the stories he DIDN'T tell...woo hoo!When you're a character like him, how can you tell when it's dementia and not just him being him?I'm pretty sure I'll be the one the kids will be telling stories on some day...though nothing like his! He should of wrote a book.Debbie

Hey, I noticed you were new to my blog, so I jumped over to check out yours...Nice story about Gus! Makes me start thinking about some of my special relatives that have passed. thanks for that...Love your blog!

feel free to join the craziness ~ there is always room for more in this nuthouse!

About Me

I am always looking for another cup of coffee, frequently dream of sunny days, and on occasion I might drink too much wine. I love sarcasm and appreciate it when it is well played. After 12 years my husband still doesn't get my sense of humor. Too dry for him I guess, perhaps he just confuses it with bitchiness.
I am a thirty-something mom of 8 year old boy/girl twins and a 10 year old daughter.
I crave order but have little of it. Evidently owning books about order does not translate into actual order. Chaos seems to live in our home with us.
I work as a nurse and when I am not working I am trying to be a good Mom and Wife. Some days that is a big job!
Man that felt a little like writing a personal ad!

My Posse...

Megan--the oldest and if you ask her the wise old owl of the family. Watches out for her siblings and overly conservative wanting to save, save, save...not like me there!
Elise- Always on the run. A party everywhere she goes! You want fun, call her! She has two modes, on and off. When she crashes she is out!
Trevor- If any of my kids grow up to be a mad scientist it will be him! I think out of all of my kids he is the least like me, but out of all my kids he might love me the most! Maybe later we will worry about how much he loves his Mom, right now I just enjoy it.